The fundamental idea of Waking Life is to facilitate a spellbinding playground where fun, music, creativity and co-creation are key and where humans and non-humans of all walks are free to (dis)connect. Waking Life wants to be part of the transition towards taking environmental and social responsibility in our society.

Entrance

Waking Life 2017 starts on Thursday August 17th and ends on Sunday August 20th. Our camping site will open on Wednesday August 16th, 12:00.

Food

As an environmentally aware event we aim to reduce our impact as much as possible and increase awareness about our landscape-ecological context. Our food shops will therefore sell a wide variety of fresh vegetarian food.

Water

Drinking water is available for free at the water taps of the camping site. Please be careful with your water usage and only use what’s necessary. Of course, you can also take a (cold) shower.

Fire

Temperatures in Alentejo in August can fluctuate between 25 and 40 degrees Celsius and Portugal alone accounts for more than half of all forest fires in the EU. We can’t be clear enough: please do not make fires of any kind (bbq, camp fires, candles, …) and be extremely careful with cigarette butts. If you see anyone making a fire, please inform them about the risk and kindly ask them to put it out.

Safety

First of all, we would like you to watch out after each other and yourself. Give help to those who need it and respect the needs or limitations of others, especially children or people with disability. Wear bio-degradable sunscreen and bring a small first aid kit if you can. Of course, our medical team will be of assistance for people with physical or psychological issues at any time. Furthermore, there are quiet places to relax and have a rest.

Sustainability

Please be so kind to be aware of how your consumption and travel impacts the environment and try to take action accordingly. We will provide as much support as possible to keep our location intact and all initiatives concerning sustainability are most welcome.

Leave no trace

One of the most important values of Waking Life. We would like to ask everyone to keep the site and its environment clean by planning ahead, leave what you find, don’t leave stuff behind, dispose your waste properly, respect nature and be considerate to other visitors. It’s just that easy!

Disability access

Waking Life wishes to offer a unique, accessible experience to all visitors, including people with disability. However, bear in mind that the festival terrain is rough and gets very hot in the month of August. Therefore, we are offering an extra ticket to any person with a disability to bring along one person to assist you, free of charge. If you wish to apply or receive information on guidance dogs, parking, camping or anything else, please get in touch via info@wakinglife.pt.

Social media

We would like to encourage everyone to disconnect from the digital realm and plug into the natural world. Feel free to take a picture every now and then, but don’t expect to take your experiences home on a camera. Please try not to film, especially not in front of a stage: not everyone likes to be caught on camera while partying and it can be disrupting for the engaging artists. In all circumstances respect people’s privacy.

Swimming

Our beautiful lake is no washing area. Take a quick shower before swimming to remove all sunscreen from your body. Swim safe, sober and only by daylight. Our Baywatch team will keep an extra eye too.

Glass

Please don’t bring glass to the grounds, it increases risk of injury and fires. Try to bring a stainless-steel water container instead.

Confetti

Although it’s fun to play with confetti & glitters, it’s a real pain in the ass to clean it all up, literally. Therefore: please leave it at home.

Sound systems

Own sound systems on the campsite or at the parking lot are prohibited.

Pets

Sun, dehydration, noise and people can increase the stress and health problems of your pets. Therefore it’s not allowed to bring them to the festival.

Cash machines / ATM

The currency at Waking Life are Klingelings. You can exchange Euros for Klingelings at our Klingeling counters, or pay for them with your bankcard. You will be able to withdraw money during Waking Life from the cash counter at the info point.

Liability

You enter the site at your own risk and responsibility. The organization cannot be held accountable for any material damage that may occur on the site.

Location

Crato is situated in Northern Alentejo, one of the most deserted regions in Southern Europe. A mythical place where the boundaries of time and space are limitless. A place with hidden realities waiting to be unveiled, in the endless plains and mountains, in the water that entertains and cures, in the great open spaces in the midst of nature.

Getting there by plane

The closest major airport is in Lisboa. It’s a smooth drive from Lisboa which will take you just a bit over 2 hours. Rental cars in Portugal are pretty cheap. Other possible airports are Porto (2h45min), Faro (3h30min) or Madrid (4h30min).

By bus

Waking Life shuttles will drive from Lisboa airport to Crato on August 16th and 17th at various hours and return to Lisbon on August 21st at 10:00. Shuttles from Porto airport drive to Crato on August 17th at 12:00 and return on August 21st at 10:00. You can book your bus ticket right here. Besides our shuttles there’s a daily bus driving from Lisboa to Crato which will take you about 3 hours. For departure times and other information, please visit www.rede-expressos.pt.

By car from Lisboa

From Lisboa, take the A1 and exit to A23 Torres Novas. Take exit 15 for IP2 to Portalegre. Continue on IP2 until you see exit N245 to Crato. When you get near the village of Crato, road signs will guide you the way to Waking Life.

By car from Porto

From Porto, take the A1 direction Lisboa and take exit 11 towards Lousã, then take the exit onto A13 towards Lousã. Exit on IC8 and get on the A23 in Castelo Branco. Follow A23 and take exit 15 for IP2 to Portalegre. Continue on IP2 until you see exit N245 to Crato.

By car from Madrid

From Madrid, take the A5 towards Placencia and Portugal. Take exit 51 towards Cáceres and keep following. After 70km, take exit 551 for N521 towards Malpartida de Cáceres, Portugal. Continue on N-521, then take N359 and IC13 to Crato, Portugal.

Carpooling

We highly encourage carpooling to those who have the possibility to do so! Please feel free to use our event page to offer – or ask – for rides to / from Waking Life.

Parking

Normal parking is free of charge. If you come with a caravan or mobile home you can use the camper parking, which costs you €10 at the entrance.

Before and after Waking Life

Portugal is a fascinating country with a diverse culture and a unique personality; including its rich history, exquisite cuisine and its people’s love for music and art. Alentejo, one of the most authentic regions in the country, is known for a heritage enriched by a variety of cultures and landscapes of unique beauty, its local traditions, timeless villages, rewarding walks and good wines. If you can, we’d highly recommend sticking around for some time…

Camping

Normal camping is included in your festival ticket. Our camping site will open on Wednesday August 16th, 12:00. We would kindly like to ask you to leave the camping site before Tuesday August 22nd, 14:00.

Tents and campers

There will be a separate campsite for normal tents and visitors with mobile homes. No cars are allowed on the campsite unless they are towing a caravan. Parking your mobile home in the camping area will cost €10 at the site. Be aware that the land can be uneven at some places and it is your own responsibility to decide whether the vehicle is suitable for the terrain.

Sleepy Tipi

A limited amount of tipis will be available, intended for those who won’t have the possibility to bring camping gear to Crato. Tipis will be up when the camping site opens on Wednesday August 16th and taken down on Tuesday August 22nd after closing the campsite. Upon entering your tipi a deposit of €100 will have to be paid which will be given back after leaving it in good condition. You can book your tipi here.

Shade

The opposite of hot sun. Used in a sentence: “The hot sun in your tent”. And yep, she burns here as well… To guarantee enough shade, we are setting up several shade spots across the camping. As it’s not possible to cover the entire area, we’d like to encourage everyone who can to bring their own shades.

Showers

Showers will be located at walking distance. Here you’ll also find refreshment points which offer drinkable water. Please be careful with your water usage and only use what’s necessary.

Market

Pass by our camping shop for local products, bio-degradable sunscreen, soap and shampoo, mosquito repellant and other useful things.

Communal kitchen

Instead of boiling noodles in front of your tent, you can cook and share a delicious meal together in our communal kitchen. Remember, camping gas on the campsite is dangerous, another important reason to use this space.

Garbage

Upon entering the terrain you will receive a garbage bag. Please keep your camping spot and the festival site clean – it’s a piece of cake if everyone does their own share! Upon handing in a full garbage bag along with your garbage deposit ticket at the collection point, you’ll get back €10 in cash.

Creative camps

We highly recommend to actively participate in Waking Life, just because it’s so much more fun. Visitors who would like to set up a creative camp are more than welcome to do so. This could be literally anything, from massages to bodypainting, from karaoke to speeddating or ping-pong tournaments – you name it. Let’s get to it!